Erasing appliance for use in type-writing.



No. 857,700. PATENTED JUNE 25, I907.

G. WHITE. ERASING APPLIANCE FOR USE IN TYPE WRIT ING.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 14. 1906.

Zdizzearw UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ERASING APPLIANCE FOR USE IN TYPE-WRITING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 25, 1907.

Appli atio fil d June 14,1906. Serial No. 321,676-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLEs WI-IITE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore, Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Erasing Appliances for Use in Type-Writing, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the art of typewriting and is designed for the purpose of enabling the operator to carry on the Work more rapidly than heretofore, rendering unnecessary the expenditure of time now employed in cleaning the machine and materially improving the appearance of the work.

In typewriting as now practiced when an erasure is made the particles of paper and ink are allowed to fall into the machine, fouling the ribbon and type to such an extent that considerable time each day must be spent in cleaning the machine by removing the cuttings or particles removed fromthe paper by the eraser. Again, the operator after the erasure is made must brush or blow off from the paper the particles of ink and paper separated from the paper during the erasing. This also consumes considerable time as it often happens that during one operation of erasure It is necessary to stop sev' eral times in order to blow or brush away the cuttings. Furthermore the inky fibers, as I have discovered, are, in the act of erasing by the rough surface of the eraser, and as they are torn from the surface, rubbed again into the paper and leave a'stained or blackened surface, after the form of the letters is removed.

Now it is the object of my invention to provide means whereby the cuttings consisting of the particles of ink and paper are automatically removed from the paper immediately upon their separation therefrom, so that said inky particles will neither fall into the machine and foul the essential parts thereof, nor will they be spread over the paper as the act of erasing continues.

For accomplishing this object, my invention comprises what may be termed a pneumatic eraser, that is to say, an erasing member associated with a pneumatic force applied directly to the area being operated on so that each particle of paper or ink or both as the case may be, as soon as it is separated from the sheet of paper being operated on will be removed automatically and at once and without requiring a cessation of the act of erasing.

The means best known to me of carrying out my invention consists in associating with the eraser a pneumatic suction so that as the eraser is moved over the area to be operated on the cuttings as they are made will be removed at once and while the erasure is being proceeded with.

The invention consists in the apparatus hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing,-Figure 1 is a side view of the erasing appliance and a part of the air suction tube and a pneumatic suction device, parts being shown in section. Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view of the rubber holder. I

In these drawings, 1 indicates the eraser proper which may be formed of rubber or other suitable material, and is representative of any device or means for accomplishing the erasures. This eraser is held in a sheath or tube 2 formed of sheet metal having a series of corrugations 3 extending longitudinally thereof from end to end. This sheath is rectangular in cross section and is elongated transversely so that the rubber to be fitted to this sheath consists of a flat piece, as shown. It preferably has rounded edges 4 leaving pronounced spaces or ducts 5 at the corners of the sheath which ducts are formed by the longitudinal corrugations. This construction also provides ducts 5 between the fiat sides of the rubber and the walls of the sheath, there being a series of these ducts. These ducts are in fixed relation to the erasing surface and always in proximity thereto so that the exhaust of air is best adapted to catch immediately and remove the torn ofi fiber or any abraded part of the eraser.

The holder fits within a casing 6 so as to slide therein, the said casing having thickened walls at 7 to provide a good bearing for the holder, but back of said thickened wall the walls are reduced in thickness to provide clearance between the holder and casing in adjusting their relation to each other. To the casing 6 a pneumatic tube 8 connects, which leads to an exhaust device 12 of any suitable construction, or to an exhaust tank, if one is available. The manner of securing the suction through the tube forms no part of my invention. The casing is provided which operators are accustomed.

with an extension 9 of wood or any other suitable material screwed or fastened in any desired way to the casing. The pneumatic tube connects with the casing on the side thereof so that when the device is held in the hand like a pen or pencil with the slightly projecting end of the erasing member on the paper, the pneumatic tube will lie within the lOllOW of the hand and will be entirely out of the way and will not interfere in any degree with the use of the eraser in the manner to When held in. the hand the extension 9 affords a rest to bear upon the first finger or hand near the knuckle, rendering the device easier of manipulation and less tiresome than the ordinary circular rubber or short straight rubber.

In use the operator applies the end of the erasing member to the paper and rubs thereover in the usual manner. All particles of paper, dust, or ink are immediately drawn away by the suction through the ducts of the holder, the casing and the pneumatic tube, and this action goes on as long as the erasing operation continues. In order to adjust the erasing member as it is consumed, I provide a pin 10 secured to the walls of the casing and passing through a slot 11 formed in the bottom of one of the corrugations of the holder. The pin bears against the inner end of the erasing member and by pushing the holder into the casing the pin moving along the slot will thrust the erasing member out wardly along its holder to expose its end to the desired amount. It will be noted that the erasing member closes the slot against the passage of air therethrough so that the full force of the suction is maintained through the duct or ducts to remove the cuttings while the erasing is being done.

It will be seen from the above that the cuttings, consisting of the paper particles, and the ink are removed completely from the machine, instead of, as heretofore being allowed to fall into the machine, fouling the ribbon, type and other parts of the machine and the removal of each inky particle as soon as it is separated from the paper will prevent smearing or smudging the work. The operators time furthermore will be saved materially, as this device avoids the brushing or blowing away of the particles which is now performed as a separate action after the erasing has been done, and of course the subsequent cleaning of the machine is also saved.

The device is arranged on the desk convenient to the operators hand. I prefer to provide a suction device under the control of the operator, who, for instance, with her foot presses a button to start the suction and maintain the same as long as said button is pressed. The corrugated formation of the holder provides a good gripping surface for the fingers. I do not limit myself to this construction however as the holder may be formed in other ways than that disclosed for 'roviding the ducts, and indeed I do not imit myself to the employment of the holder as the means or part of the means for providing the ducts. The holder may in fact be dispensedwith and the pneumatic force applied in a different Way than that shown.

WVhat I claim is:

1. An ink erasing appliance comprising an erasing member adapted to be grasped by the fingers and to be thereby rubbed back and forth on the paper, a portion of the structure having an air passage leading to the erasing surface and a pneumatic device for exhausting the air through said passage during the operation of erasing, substantially as herein described.

2. An ink erasing appliance comprising an erasing member adapted to be grasped by the fingers and to be thereby rubbed back and forth on the paper, a portion of the structure having an air passage in fixed proximity to the abrading surface, and a pneumatic device for exhausting the air through said passage during the operation of erasing, substantially as herein described.

3. An erasing appliance comprising an erasing member, a holder therefor consisting of a corrugated or grooved member forming between itself and the erasing member a duct or ducts and a suction tube connected with the holder through which the cuttings are removed as they are formed, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES WHITE.

Witnesses:

AUGUSTUS M. DENHARD, RICHARD B. PUE. 

